McDonalds want you to eat more than just Big Macs and Egg McMuffins

The fast-food giant is making some changes in the hopes of weaning South Africans off their franchise favourites.

It’s as if our prayers have been answered. And by ‘ours’, I mean the people who’ve missed the McDonalds breakfast cut-off times, due to oversleeping or traffic jams. There’s nothing quite as demoralizing as seeing those breakfast boards above the counter spin around to reveal the regular menu in all its bland glory.

But things are changing at the Big M. Jo-Ann de Wet, chief operations and supply chain officer of McDonald’s explain to Business Insider that they’ve implemented a two-pronged strategy in an attempt to diversify consumer choices.

McDonalds self-service kiosks

According to De Wet, consumers often feel pressured while waiting in the queue to order, and as such revert to familiar choices. The Big Mac is the most common example.
De Wet says:

“(With the kiosks) people have more time to familiarise themselves with the menu and maybe try something new.”

McDonald’s extended breakfast hours

A personal favourite for which I commend McDonald’s; the franchise is extending breakfast operating hours to 15:00, with a few stores in the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal already implementing the changes as a trial.

Mmabatho Mphahlele, of McDonald’s, commented on the McBreakfast changes:

“Many people are not familiar with our breakfast menu.”

He hopes extending the breakfast hours will introduce the public to a varied menu, thereby diversifying consumption. Another attempt to entice customers to try something different.

Something different which McDonald’s have just introduced to the breakfast menu is a breakfast wrap that comes with a fried egg, cheese and smoked chicken filling. This is their ‘newest’ offering, with promises of delivering further original menu options in the near future.

McDonalds South Africa seems to be taking tips from the international market in diversifying their product range and offering customers a more varied fast food experience whether it be via self-service, kiosks, extended hours, or new products.

The extended breakfast menu will be available at different Gauteng restaurants until July 6.